A Rainbow Week

We have now been at Escapees Rainbow Plantation for almost 2 weeks.  The weather has been bitterly cold, especially for this area, but our hearts have been warmed by our association with the other escapees, mostly full-time RVers, who are suffering in the cold with us.

We celebrated the New Year and have enjoyed several meals together prepared by the most capable Chef Larry.  We have attended a few of the 4 o’clock socials and have enjoyed talking to our neighbors as we go about our business around the park.  Saturday morning, Gene participated in the craft and/or flea market as both a seller and a buyer.

During the past couple weeks we have gotten to know fellow RVers, Mike and Gerri Jones, and enjoyed a day touring Pensacola together.  We invited them, along with Norm and Linda Payne and Don and Gloria Martin, over for snacks one afternoon.  Yesterday, we were invited for a chili lunch with Mike and Gerri and ended up staying most of the afternoon.

One of the great rewards of being an RVer is the fellowship of other RVers.  We love our families and enjoy spending time with them, but nobody understands the wanderlust and this nomadic lifestyle like other nomads.  We have been inspired and encouraged this week by the hours of discussion with all these fine folks.  We have especially enjoyed hearing about Norm and Linda and Don and Gloria’s past travels and plans for future adventures.  It sparks our interest in the places they’ve been and we have added several things to our “gotta see” list.

Mike and Gerri are relatively new to the full-timing lifestyle (started full-time in August) although they have been RVing for several years.  The enthusiasm they have as “newbies” is heart warming and it has spilled over onto us.  We have a renewed spirit to get out there with more energy (just as soon as the weather breaks).

Lucky for us, we will be extending our stay here until Friday because of some difficulty we had getting a reservation at a campground in St. Augustine.  We have learned over the years that it is very helpful to be flexible in this lifestyle.  There is no place we’d rather stay for a few extra days than right here at Rainbow Plantation.